The Canadian sport tech sector has surged in recent years and is projected to generate USD $1.4 B in revenue by 2030 (Horizon Grand View Research). Positioned at the intersection of sports, hospitality, and event management, it’s a space poised for innovations that could redefine how tournaments are organized and experienced. For Eric Vardon, President at EventConnect—an all-in-one tournament management platform—the future of sports tech lies in the untapped potential of youth sports and the hospitality experiences that surround them. Organized travel sports, particularly those requiring hotel stays, present significant opportunities to enhance family experiences and boost the economic impact of tournaments worldwide. “The youth sports market is growing rapidly, with private equity and big brands entering. But at the core, it’s about parents and loved ones who are driving or flying teams to events. We take hospitality seriously because if families aren’t happy, no one is,” adds Vardon.

Established in 2012 as Room Roster, what started off as an accommodation-focused platform for minor sports tournaments is now EventConnect, a seamless and comprehensive championship management system that combines effective event coordination with travel, accommodations, and marketing/communications. Although EventConnect’s software is a fully end-to-end solution, the platform is highly customizable, and the team takes pride in offering integrations with larger or custom registration systems.

With a team of 85 full-time employees and several remote members across Canada, EventConnect has grown rapidly through strategic collaborations, strong R&D, and a well-integrated team structure. 
 
While growth potential became stagnant for many companies during the pandemic, for EventConnect, this was the perfect opportunity to catalyze their momentum. From 2020 to 2022, the company doubled down on feature development, rebranded, brought on new talent, and had strategic conversations with partners and collaborators all day, every day. “That combination of listening and building gave us a big head start while competitors halted development. Since events were paused, this gave us time to talk to tournament organizers who were usually busy on the field or rink,” says Vardon. By driving partnerships to improve the capabilities of the software and expanding its adoption by other businesses, EventConnect leads with the approach of offering flexibility and integration that works for their collaborators. Their recent launch of HousingConnect, a feature that licensed their software to other housing companies with market or sport-specific expertise, and CityConnect, that helps tournaments calculate their economic impact through custom data models, are examples of successful case studies of this business strategy. “These collaborations have been a big success and keep us a market leader. We also invest heavily in R&D, balancing internal efficiencies with partner-facing innovations. Our development team is huge and continues to grow,” says Vardon.

Positioned at the intersection of sports, technology, and hospitality, EventConnect’s team reflects that unique blend—driven by a strong work ethic, a love for sports, and an innate sense of hospitality. Maintaining a customer-first mentality, Vardon notes that they regularly track client expectations and satisfaction levels to ensure they meet their own high standards of service. 

Although securing the best tech talent can prove challenging for many scaling companies across Canada, EventConnect finds that being headquartered in London, ON provides a distinct advantage when it comes to attracting new employees. As evident from a recent report by Robert Half, 91% of technology leaders in Canada agree that finding skilled IT and tech talent to support business priorities is harder than ever. “The city’s talent pool is great, from developers to hospitality professionals. Proximity to Western University, Ivey, and Fanshawe College means we hire a lot of local graduates, many of whom become customers later,” says Vardon. That’s not all—London has been a great place to build their venture. “This is a sports city. We invest locally through sponsorships and our connections run deep here,” says Vardon.  
 
EventConnect remains focused on steady, strategic growth, continuing to scale as a market leader while investing in its people and product innovation. With a strong pipeline, an ambitious product roadmap, and a rapidly expanding development team, the company is committed to enhancing its technology, refining features for partners, and exploring new ways to leverage data and hospitality to elevate the youth sports experience. “At this stage, it’s about staying on the course. Scaling, innovating, and delivering on what we’ve promised our partners,” says Vardon. With five to six open roles and a continued push to hire locally, EventConnect’s future growth is poised to strengthen both the sports tech sector and London’s reputation as a hub for sports, technology, and hospitality excellence.